BUFFALO—Maple Leafs coach Ron Wilson has decided on his top two lines to start the season and neither includes the name of rookie hopeful Nazem Kadri.

He's also got his wingers on the third and fourth lines, leaving the final battle at forward for the last two pivot positions, which, given that they are largely checking roles, aren't likely to include the team's top draft pick from 2009 either.

The most likely scenario will see Kadri start the season with the Marlies, the only mitigating factor being that John Mitchell — presumed to hold down one of those final two centre spots — isn't asserting himself at camp either.

Kadri could even be returned to the London Knights if the Leafs decide that would be the best place for him to continue his development.

In the wake of Friday's 3-1 loss to a veteran-laden Sabres squad here, Wilson said one of his top two lines will be Tyler Bozak between Kris Versteeg and Phil Kessel and the other will have Mikhail Grabovski centring Clarke MacArthur and Nikolai Kulemin, who produced Toronto's only goal in this loss.

Wilson said his third line will have wingers Colby Armstrong and the injured Fredrik Sjostrom, while the Colton Orr and Mike Brown will be fixtures on the flanks of the fourth line.

“I have to decide who the (last two) centres are going to be,” said Wilson.

Those two will presumably come from among Mitchell, Kadri and Christian Hanson, who played on the wing in this game. Big German import Marcel Mueller could grab one of those spots too.

While Kadri asserted himself more than in his two previous exhibition games, he has yet to produce a point — though he did score a shootout goal in London — and he struggles away from the puck, which doesn't exactly make him a top candidate in a checking role.

“He showed me he turns the puck over a lot and he's got to get over that,” said Wilson, assessing Kadri's play against the Sabres.

“He showed me that I don't know how sharp his skates are because he can't stop when there's a turnover. He goes for a big skate. There's a lot of little junior things that we have to get out of his game.”

Kadri, though, still believes he is NHL-ready.

“I think physically and mentally, I'm all there,” he said after the game. “With a little more practice, I think I'll be pretty sharp. So, just given the opportunity, I'm going to hopefully cash in on it.”

While it seems unlikely the Leafs will axe Kadri in the wave of cuts that is expected to take place Sunday — Toronto still has four friendlies to play — the only thing that might be keeping him in the mix is Mitchell, who has picked up where he left off last season. That's not a positive.

“He's in a battle, that's all I can say. He's got to find a way to do more,” Wilson said when asked about Mitchell's play.

The centre, who faded in his sophomore year last season after showing promise in his rookie campaign, agreed that he hasn't been at his best.

“Certainly I can play better, I know I can,” he said after the loss. “It's unfortunate, the outcome of tonight. I think we could have come out and (played a bit harder) on everyone's part, including myself.”

While Kadri doesn't lack for self-confidence, he conceded he does need to work on certain aspects of his game.

“I think I know what I can do on the offensive side and I know my capabilities of goal scoring and playmaking and generating offence,” said the 19-year-old, who was scoring whiz in junior.

“When it comes to the defensive side of the puck, that's what I really want to improve on.”

The Leafs are expected to cut more than 20 players from the 51 remaining in camp.

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